April 12 - May 5, 2002
This was the third musical I directed in California. It was a short, unanticipated effort since I was hired about three weeks before auditions.
Being interested in advocating the classics, but not in being married to doing things how they're "supposed to be," directing a Rodgers and Hammerstein was interesting. For example, we started the show with "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" in a corn field that opened up midsong onto Aunt Eller's farm.
Focusing on the two triangles -- of the leads, and of Will/Ado Annie/Ali Hakim -- and the authenticity of the frontier environment were crucial in making the show something more than "two and a half hours about who she'll take to the party."
In addition to directing the show, I staged several of the musical numbers, including "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'," "The Surrey With the Fringe On Top," "I Cain't Say No," "People Will Say We're in Love," "Pore Jud is Daid," and "Lonely Room."